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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/30137112">The Inherent Poetry of Science</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/entomology/pseuds/entomology'>entomology</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Bugsnax (Video Game)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Body Horror, Eventual Relationships, Eventual Romance, First Love, Fluff, Friends to Lovers, Gen, Mutual Pining, Nonbinary Character, OC X CANON, Original Character(s), Other, Plot, Science, Slow Burn, floofty is incredibly repressed im so so sorry, ill add more tags as needed but this should do it for now, they have no fucking clue what a crush is. this is their first one, they literally think theyre sick</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2021-03-19</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-03-22</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-15 17:20:14</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>5</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>5,847</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/30137112</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/entomology/pseuds/entomology</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>This fic follows the development of a relationship between Floofty and an OC!<br/>OC is in the exploration group, fic starts pre-game and will likely continue on to post-game. I intend to write this all out.<br/>Scientist x scientist romance. OC is a zoologist. Floofty is a general biologist &amp; "gastroentomologist". I like writing really silly romantic things, so expect a fair bit of humor mixed in with my dumb poetry.<br/>This'll be a long one, so stay tuned &lt;3 should update regularly</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Floofty Fizzlebean/Original Character(s)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>10</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>33</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. First Impressions</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Hello! I have finally decided to write out the plot of my silly little bugsnax OC. He's got a reference sheet, if you'd like to see him:<br/>https://scarabteeth.tumblr.com/post/645406186508795904/a-proper-ref-for-this-guy-hes-part-of-the</p><p>Notes:<br/>- Floofty is autistic<br/>- Bearemy is heavily mentally ill and it's referenced a fair bit, i like to project<br/>- I like to mess around with perspectives a lot because it makes writing stuff more interesting for me, i'll try to make note of it though!<br/>- I'm very passionate about science because i am an entomologist irl so i'm sorry if i kind of nerd out<br/>- There'll be more content outside of Just The Ship At Hand because i really enjoy writing friendships as well so. hope you enjoy!</p><p>and that's it! thank you for reading my very silly little thing. i know it is a bit cringe but it's fun</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>When Elizabert Megafig had announced her expedition, thoughts started to run through his head.<br/>
He is a quiet man, sitting alone in a shabby apartment he isn’t sure he can afford next month’s rent of. The news was passed around in the circles he frequents. There were more skeptics than there was interest, at least in the forums he frequents. No one thinks anything she’s saying is possible and, well, she’s lost a lot of credibility in recent years.<br/>
Nobody returns from Snaktooth, they say.<br/>
But it’s likely no one returns because they aren’t equipped to live on a harsh island with little to no established civilization. No hospitals, no grocery stores. The only things to eat there are things from the island, and not everyone can hunt.<br/>
That’s why most places get the reputation of “no one coming back”. It isn’t because of some evil curse (or, that’s what his therapist would tell him), it’s because the average grumpus can’t survive out there. And he can’t fault them. The convenience of city life is there for a reason.</p><p>	It’s been over a year now that he’s been out of work. A series of personal problems (and definitely not a delusional outburst- surely everyone else is wrong) uprooted him from normalcy, and he’s been isolated almost every day since then. In his house. Watching everything, hardly talking. Living on the remainder of the money his life’s work earned him until it runs out. And that drew closer much faster than he’d hoped.<br/>
Ah, the economy. Right? And not demons or curses or anything like that. “If you keep telling yourself that, maybe you’ll believe it”, he was told by a very old and very unamused grumpus sitting opposite of him in an uncomfortably small chair, who he legally had to speak to about what was wrong with him, but any time he did it really just felt like she was getting tired of him and wanted their appointments to be over.<br/>
He shakes his head. Back to reality, now.</p><p>He is a skilled zoologist and conservationist. Or he was. His thoughts have gotten more disorganized, and he’s out of a job, but he remains passionate. The first thing he has heard was that Snaktooth island is home to many unique endemic species. Things you’ll never see anywhere else, that have evolved there for who knows how long. Immediately, the thoughts started flowing. What are they? How many different species live on that island? How many are completely endemic? Are they whole new animals? How much have the individual species advanced? Different morphs? Social structures and hierarchies? How big are their populations? <em>What does this mean for the ecosystem? For the world?</em><br/>
It’s fascinating. He can’t get it out of his head.</p><p>	Messages are sent between each other. She recognizes his work- after years of researching and working alongside sensitive species, of course he’s met his fair share of explorers.<br/>
Perhaps a deal can be met. He offers his services, but she tells him just to come.<br/>
But she might take him up on it anyways.</p><p>	----<br/>
The air smells salty as they sail in. He steps down, the nostalgic feeling of paws in fresh sand bringing a smile to his face, and he looks around in awe.<br/>
There are others here. He doesn’t know them, but recognizes a few names. One of the famed Lottablogs, and of course, Wiggle. Why IS she here? Maybe rich people can just take vacations like this.<br/>
This island will likely be where he stays. It costs nothing, and, well. He doesn’t have anything left. The opportunity to throw himself back into his work is so exciting. He feels incomplete when he’s not in the field.</p><p>	He knows there isn’t food here, and he’ll have to hunt. It’s nothing he hasn’t done before, but he does find it unfortunate. He’d much rather observe them and their behaviors. After all…. This is unlike anything he’s ever seen before. What are they? They remind him of the many bugs he’s studied who camouflage themselves so well to blend in with their environment. Bugs who look exactly like flowers or dead leaves, complete with false rot patterns. But these ones clearly aren’t doing it for camouflage. I mean, anyone can see a giant hot dog wiggling in the grass. He has a lot to learn, and he supposes he’ll simply try to keep tabs on populations, doing his best to eat the more common and conserving the rarer ones.<br/>
He wonders if any of them are threatened. But this whole island feels so.. Untouched.</p><p>	It takes him a moment to realize he’s been standing in the middle of the woods, staring at everything and mumbling under his breath, and has not followed the others or gone to the town they’ve just begun setting up. He shakes his head, and continues on.</p><p>	He’s greeted by Elizabert and her partner, who introduces herself as Eggabell. They hold out their paws to shake, and it takes him almost an entire minute to remember what he’s supposed to do in this situation.<br/>
Whether or not she noticed the odd behavior (she did), Liz laughs good naturedly and gives the newcomers the run-down. The basics of what they know so far, which isn’t a whole lot. Instructions to pick a spot to set up their hut, and apologies that it may be sleeping bags for a while until they’re finished. He hardly listens, though, distracted by whatever the hell is happening with Liz and Eggabell’s limbs. Are they food? Is that painful?? They aren’t acknowledging it at all. They call it a side effect when questioned, but assure the others it’s harmless. He’s never seen anything like it.<br/>
With that brief introduction over, he’s left to mingle, which he isn’t quite sure how to tackle yet.<br/>
He looks around.</p><p>	He recognizes Liz, of course. She explained that Eggabell is a nurse, so that’s good. He recognizes Wiggle, and he can guess who Triffany is by her resemblance to her grandmother. There are some other science types by the looks of it, which is promising to him, and there are a few who remind him of the kind of people who would’ve bullied him for being a nerd in high school. There are some farmers, too, by the looks of it.</p><p>	He is standing there and staring again. It catches the attention of Triffany, who asks him if he’s alright.<br/>
He shakes his head once more then nods.<br/>
“Sorry. It is a lot of information to take in at once, i’m not sure where to start.”<br/>
She smiles and sympathizes with him, and introduces herself. Tiffany Lottablog, archaeologist.<br/>
“What’s your name, hon?”<br/>
Oh my g-d, he has a name. He hasn’t talked to anyone regularly in a year. Has he even been called his name by anyone other than a medical professional in that year? He certainly isn’t introducing himself as much as he used to.<br/>
“Bearemy Polartusk- zoologist. I’d like to study the endemic species here.”<br/>
“How exciting! I’m here to study, too. I’ve heard this island has some really interesting history,  and i’m ready to follow in gramma’s footsteps!”<br/>
He smiles.<br/>
“If you find anything on the snax.. I’d love to hear it. It could really help to have some idea of how they evolved”<br/>
She seems incredibly excited by that, and they chat for a while about their mutual interests. He’s got a heavy accent, Russian, but so does she. Wisconsin, if he had to guess. It’s endearing. They agree to keep each other updated, should they find anything.</p><p>	They’ve got a listener. He turns to a dark blue grumpus, who wraps his arm around Triffany.<br/>
He introduces himself as Wambus, a farmer, married to Triffany. Bearemy puts his paw out to shake first this time.<br/>
Wambus’ idea is that the bugsnax grow from the ground. Bearemy honestly isn’t sure what to think. They move like animals, but a lot of them are plants.. But some aren’t? Some are processed food. How does it work?<br/>
In any case, it’s important to his own work as well to find out how they DO reproduce, and Wambus’ idea isn’t impossible. He’ll have to keep in touch.<br/>
Bearemy is once again staring off at nothing and mumbling under his breath. His thoughts are always disorganized, and he’s always repeating his thoughts quietly out loud when he needs to keep track of them. This…. Is unfortunately the end of the conversation, as the now-confused Wambus wanders off.</p><p>	This is when he’s noticed by one of the ones he thought looked like a scientist. Short, purple, and vaguely disinterested- though their curiosity is piqued at the man mumbling scientific nonsense to himself.<br/>
He doesn’t notice them standing there immediately, and they have to snap their fingers (toes? paw pads?) to get his attention, distracted by his own internal conversation.<br/>
“Hm?”<br/>
Bearemy is large, with thick white fur and almost mane-like, blue-tipped tufts of hair. He has extremely large tusks, a couple of snaggleteeth, and big, clawed paws. He might look a little intimidating if it weren’t for the heart-shaped pockets on his coat, or his messy fluffball of a tail.<br/>
They look up at him with raised brows.<br/>
“It seems like a poor choice to leave reality in the middle of active construction.”<br/>
He blinks, then snorts quietly. “Sorry. It’s how i remember, but i get a little lost sometimes.”<br/>
They shrug. Not their process, but fair. “I overheard some of that. What is it you’re here to do?”<br/>
“I work in zoology and conservation. The species here seem to be exclusively endemic- i haven’t seen a single familiar animal, nor have i seen any of these outside of this island. Though i haven’t seen a lot, yet-”<br/>
He clicks the pen in his pocket, a distraction for the hands to keep him grounded.<br/>
“I am surprised there aren’t any food pests. One would think there would, with the amount of loose food bits.. But there aren’t. It’s interesting. I’m studying what this may mean in an environmental sense, and- well, if all went well, perhaps we could see them in zoos someday.”<br/>
He’s used to people getting lost when he talks a little too long and a little disorganized like that, but they seem to follow<br/>
“Fascinating.”<br/>
They look interested for the first time since he got here, and he smiles a little.<br/>
“I’m here to become the world’s first gastroentomologist. I’m sure you’ve noticed the changes in some grumpuses’ bodies- i’d like to study the effects of bugsnax further.”<br/>
Similar goals, then, just in different areas. They’re more interested in what bugsnax do and their interactions with grumpuses, and he’s more interested in how they work and their environment.<br/>
They continue on their ramble. He senses that they’re talking down to him just a little, but doesn’t mind all that much. They aren’t outright insulting him, they just seem very, very confident in themself and their own ideas. It’s exciting, he thinks, to finally be able to talk to others in the science field like he used to.</p><p>	They snap their fingers, and he realizes he’s been doing that thing again.<br/>
“Reality, Bearemy.”<br/>
Blink.<br/>
“How do you know my name? I haven’t introduced myself yet”<br/>
“Yes, but i was listening.”<br/>
…. Huh! Alright. He’s not sure if he should be unsettled by that, but it isn’t a big deal.<br/>
“Oh. Well, what is your name, then?”<br/>
They straighten up, very confident for someone at such a puntable size.<br/>
“Floofty Fizzlebean.”<br/>
They don’t offer their paw to shake this time, and he’s almost relieved. Social things are not either of their specialties.<br/>
They look a bit goat-like, which makes it obvious they’re related to one of the others he saw here. Thick claws, a broad nose with v-shaped nostrils, and though their fur is shorter, it fans out in places. It’s fitting. They look nice.<br/>
No spacing out, though. He clicks his pen.<br/>
“It is.. Nice meeting you. I haven’t had the opportunity to speak with anyone who likes this kind of thing in.. a while.”<br/>
He furrows his brow, but if they notice the sadness in that, they don’t comment on it.<br/>
“Likewise. I believe your work will prove valuable to me, if you would like to share notes.”<br/>
He perks up, nodding.<br/>
“That sounds perfect. I look forward to working with you”<br/>
They nod, walking off to the spot they’ve chosen as a sleeping place. He chooses his own, and sets down what little he had to bring.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Routine</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>He rubs his eyes, blinking in the morning sunlight.<br/>
Progress on the huts is going quickly with everyone pitching in. They’re even getting beds. It’s a step up from the mattress he had on his apartment floor, and though there isn’t much electricity out here, he’d consider life here a step up from that apartment.</p><p>	He’s been here- he isn’t sure, actually. Over a week. Maybe a few? Some of the grumpuses don’t get along, and sometimes there’s drama, but it’s usually quelled pretty fast. Lizbert brings home most of the food, and Wambus is doing well farming, though he has yet to grow any bugsnax. He’s briefly met most of the others, with the recent addition of Gramble, who he’s determined to keep in touch with. Gramble’s idea, he thinks, is the most likely. He says he’s struggling to breed them because bugsnax seem to lack genitalia-- but in Bearemy’s experience, plenty of invertebrates lack any visible sex characteristics. There’s all sorts of ways it might work.<br/>
Bearemy hoists himself up, heading off to Gramble’s ranch.</p><p>	He walks in, greeted with the familiar sight of Gramble with sauce smudged in his messy fur. The small grumpus is always a little dirty and sticky, but he says it’s worth it to keep the bugsnax’ attention.<br/>
At least it makes a good distraction for him to study them.</p><p>	“Heya, Bear!”<br/>
He sits down in the pen. People have been shortening his name like that, but he doesn’t mind. It’s sort of.. Nice. He hasn’t had many friends in his life, but he guesses this is what it’s like. The nickname has grown on him.<br/>
“Hey, Gramble. Any luck yet?”<br/>
Gramble shakes his head.<br/>
“It’s alright. It doesn’t happen in a day- i mean, we have no idea what the process is, or how long the gestation period may be- it could be seasonal, or something to do with moon phases, or hormones, or age, or-”<br/>
He’s pulled out of his tangent when a spoon pokes him.<br/>
He looks down at the Kweeble.<br/>
“- sorry. How are they, otherwise?”<br/>
Bearemy gently picks up the kweeble, studying it while Gramble talks.<br/>
“Aw, they’re as good as ever!<br/>
…. Little slow, though- they aren’t as trainable as i hoped, like a dog or somethin’,”<br/>
He nods, sketching down as many of the details as he can find on the kweeble, making little notes. How many seeds, the size of the spoon, etc.<br/>
“Mm, well they certainly aren’t mammals- invertebrates are a little hit or miss as far as training. Have you tried any puzzles?”<br/>
“No- but that sure sounds like fun!”<br/>
He nods, smiling.<br/>
It’s been like this a while now. He likes to gather up what notes and observations he can from the other grumpuses, and then read and compare for hours. They’re only at the very beginnings of finding out what these creatures are, and they only have the barest scraps of knowledge so far- but even that is an incredible first start, in his eyes.</p><p>	Gramble asks him what he’s doing today. He explains that he’d like to travel out a little and see if he can record any of the snax at the beach with Floofty. Gramble fidgets.<br/>
“Floofty makes me kinda nervous. I can never follow what they’re talkin’ about and then they get all frustrated at me!”<br/>
Bearemy laughs.<br/>
“They aren’t really that bad. I think they just have their own way of thinking.”<br/>
He clicks his pen.<br/>
“They like it when you listen.”<br/>
Gramble laughs and says something about it being difficult with all those long words they use, and eventually they part ways for the night, Bearemy thanking Gramble for letting him come study again.<br/>
He drops off the notes he took, and goes out to find Floofty.</p><p>	They’re in their hut, just finishing something up with Eggabell.<br/>
She’s had a lot of snax lately, and he has to remind himself not to giggle at things like banana feet. Eggabell is a very respectable person and doctor in his eyes, but the side effects of Floofty’s research will never cease to amuse him just a little.<br/>
She gives him a friendly wave. They run into each other a lot, both working alongside the resident (mad) scientist.<br/>
“Hey. Is Liz out again?”<br/>
She nods.<br/>
“Out in the desert, i think.. She said something about mantids.”<br/>
He shudders.<br/>
“And here i was thinking about tagging along.”<br/>
He has.. Long, thick fur, raised up in mountains and hanging around very cold environments through much of his life. Not a big desert guy.<br/>
He does love when Lizbert allows him to come see the things she’s found, but it isn’t all that often. She’s into the gritty explorer work, and he always wants to sit there and stare at the bugs.<br/>
Eggabell laughs at his Very Inconvenient Biology, wishing them well before heading off.<br/>
And then there were two.<br/>
Floofty grabs their notepad from the disorganized makeshift desk they’ve made, and joins him. They seem a little frustrated- but perhaps they’re just feeling pent up.<br/>
“Are we off, then?”<br/>
He nods, and off they go.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. Beach Trip</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The salty ocean breeze feels good in his fur. He feels more free out here, less like he’s being stared at.<br/>Floofty, while condescending at times, never really seems to mind some of his more outlandish behavior. It either doesn’t strike them as all that unusual, given that they have a similar lack in the social-skills area, or they’ve decided the benefits of his studies outweigh any annoyance. Maybe a little bit of both.</p>
<p>	The beach is alive with snax, almost all fruit-based. Neither of them have studied this place yet at great length, so it’s a bit exciting.<br/>It’s his job to watch and relay any details he notices, and he’ll do the catching work if they’d like to take one home. It works for both of them. They may make the decision to eat it, or even pin it- and while he may not enjoy it all that much, he understands the importance of pinning. Better them do it for him.</p>
<p>	He’ll start with what he can see.<br/>“There’s a crab..apple.”<br/>He tries not to laugh at it saying “”crapple””. Incredible.<br/>“It appears to be semi-aquatic,” he notes with great interest, watching the crab scuttle out of the water. Likely in search of food. “They leave the water now and then, see? I wonder- if there are semi-aquatic species, are there fully aquatic ones out deeper in the ocean? We haven’t seen anything like these outside of here, but it doesn’t seem impossible. I wonder how far they spread out from here”<br/>As he rambles, they write things down, humming in interest.<br/>They tap their pencil against the side of their goggles in thought.<br/>“If there are aquatic species, would eating them give a grumpus aquatic traits? Theoretically, if you could give yourself gills, wouldn’t you be able to breathe underwater? This could mean a lot for undersea research, or even commercial diving-”<br/>They scribble away furiously. He likes to listen to them when they get excited like this.<br/>“I hope you’re ready to get your fur wet. I’d like you to look deeper.”<br/>He raises an eyebrow.<br/>“You aren’t coming?”<br/>“<em>I</em> have the notebook, don’t i?”<br/>They give him a smug look, because they absolutely thought about this before coming. Floofty cannot be outwitted.<br/>He snorts, but relents, wading into the water without much regard for the coat he’s wearing. It doesn’t cover a whole lot of him anyways. That’s what fur’s for.</p>
<p>	His large paws are fairly well suited for swimming. It’s shallow enough for him to simply wade for a while, but he does duck down under the waves now and then, peeking around for any underwater snax, but all he can find is crapples. Damn.<br/>He does manage to get the jump on one, scooping it up and carrying it back out of the water and shaking the water out of his fur like a wet dog. Splashing Floofty is his own small victory.<br/>“All i got, boss”<br/>“There wasn’t anything else down there? Curious. Perhaps they are still evolving for underwater environments, or haven’t yet had any reason to adapt to such a lifestyle.”<br/>He nods, carefully studying the frantic snak.<br/>He looks over the crab’s carapace-- but can’t quite see anything that would tell him where gills are. The “shell” is just apple skin, and pressing his paws against it only feels like touching an apple. No part of this animal’s anatomy tells him anything about lungs.<br/>He starts to mumble again while he’s looking, and Floofty listens in.<br/>His words always come out a jumbled mess, disorganized thoughts and fragmented internal conversations, but sometimes there’s something useful in there.<br/>They snap their fingers again. They have to do that a lot with him.<br/>“Sorry. I can’t find any gills here. Crab gills aren’t really visible, but- but this just looks like an apple.”<br/>He hands the snak over to Floofty, who looks similarly confused.<br/>“Hm. That does bring up an interesting question- do they have to breathe? Does this one simply stay underwater out of preference, or is there a reason? Can bugsnax drown?”<br/>They bite their eraser in thought.<br/>“There’s a lot more to test.”<br/>He nods happily, and the crapple is set down, scuttling away.<br/>“Should we proceed onward? There is some debris over there I'd like to check.”<br/>“Lead the way.”<br/>They get up, Floofty taking the lead as they walk over to the boat wreckage.</p>
<p>	The initial wreckage isn’t the only crashed boat, as it turns out. This beach is like a pirate graveyard, with lava flows and big, hot caves. He can only imagine how much has happened. Triffany would love this sort of thing.<br/>Floofty pads off ahead of him, scanning the area. There are bigger, more aggressive snax here. They’re tempted to charge right in.</p>
<p>	A colorful, popsicle-like phasmid locks sights on them. They don’t move as it charges them, instead writing things down. Bearemy steps in front of them, pushing the creature back, which.. Results in his hands becoming icy.<br/>Their eyes light up.<br/>“It can freeze things? Incredible. Does it hurt?”<br/>He holds up his very frozen paws.<br/>“It’s just kind of numb.”<br/>“Can you move them?”<br/>He tries. They feel very stiff and frozen and it takes a moment for him to crack the ice enough that he can wiggle his fingers.<br/>They continue to scribble down notes, smiling.<br/>“So the freezing is more or less harmless. I wonder how long it would take to get frostbite from it- or if there’s some reason you wouldn’t. This could be useful..”<br/>He snorts at their sort of tunnel-vision rambles, wiping his wet, icy paw on their cheek. They make some awful indignant noise, but they don’t stop writing.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0004"><h2>4. It's Probably Nothing.</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>hi! i've written way too much and i am so sorry. i was very nervous about posting this publicly. but here goes!</p><p>this chapter recounts the events of a couple previous ones, but from Floofty's point of view. I don't know what i did with the perspective. this is a thinly veiled character study. i like messing with characters that don't express much. can you tell</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Your name is Floofty Fizzlebean and you’re on an island studying bugsnax and their effects on grumpuses. You didn’t expect your brother to be here, but apparently his boyfriend has dragged him along, and as you locked eyes, you both wordlessly picked up pinecones and chucked them at each other, leaving the green one utterly confused.</p><p>You’ve been quietly observing the other grumpuses here. Sometimes, they come and try to introduce themselves. Most of them are too dull to hold a real conversation. They give you that blank, confused look when you use too many long words. You find this incredibly irritating.</p><p>Triffany Lottablog is tolerable. She’s very smart, but a little bit too cheery for your tastes. Still, she’s someone interesting to converse with.<br/>The white, fluffy grumpus she spoke to- who you’ve learned from eavesdropping is named Bearemy- is mumbling to himself, which at first you find disconcerting, but you overhear unmistakable scientific nonsense and you’re intrigued.<br/>He doesn’t notice you when you walk up to him. He continues to ramble quiet, disorganized sentences to himself until you finally get tired of waiting and snap your fingers. He clicks his pen, and speaks to you in what sounds like a very thick Russian accent.<br/>He’s another scientist. Not quite in the same way you are- he researches animals and environment. You’re more into direct cause and effect and experiments, while he prefers to simply observe, or care for things. You suppose that’s respectable. That at least makes a few useful grumpuses here- aside from him, who is apparently a zoologist of some sort, there’s you (a biologist, but you have a mix of skills), your brother (an engineer), Triffany (an archaeologist), and you suppose Elizabert, the explorer, although she isn’t much for science, more stumbling into undiscovered things.<br/>Bearemy continues to get easily confused and lost, and you have to snap your fingers here and there, but it’s fine. His ideas are interesting enough to make some attempt to keep him engaged.</p><p>-</p><p>It’s been a few weeks now. The resident Elderly Lunatic is already painting a bad picture of you, and most of the others buy it. Few grumpuses truly understand your work, which you’re finding to be an incredibly annoying wrench in things, but you’re used to it.<br/>Eggabell is a willing participant in your experiments. You two are friends, you think. You’ve never been very good at understanding social things like that.<br/>Bearemy helps do some of the dirty work, in exchange for accompanying him while he sits there and stares at them sometimes. You’re also.. friends. You decide not to dwell on why your friendship to him feels very, very different.</p><p>As you finish up your work with Eggabell, she briefly mentions Shelda. You huff. She sighs, reassuring you that she’s sure it’ll all settle down eventually.<br/>Bearemy arrives at the end of the experiment. His fur is too thick to go exploring in the desert with Elizabert. You believe he’d keel over in an instant, but don’t comment on it. Your two friends are laughing, and it kind of makes you happy, but you still wait until they’re done speaking and Eggabell has left to gather yourself and indicate that you’re ready to go.<br/>The two of you are going to the beach. This was a mutual decision. You don’t know why your cheeks feel a little bit warm at the idea of walking on the beach with him. It’s probably nothing. You haven’t explored the beach much yet, and you vaguely hope his cold-weather fur won’t be an issue there, too, considering the sun. You aren’t sure why you care about trivial things like that. It doesn’t affect you. It’s probably nothing.</p><p>On the way there, he talks about his visit with Gramble. You don’t think much of Gramble other than being a little amused that there’s someone smaller than you here. You’re often the shortest. Not anymore. You find his sleepwalking intriguing and occasionally watch him, much to his dismay, on the occasions he wakes up. You think he’s a bit of a wimp. Bearemy agrees, but they’re good friends anyways. You have no way of knowing whether his work will be fruitful (ha), so you suppose you can’t dismiss it quite yet. Fair enough.</p><p>You realize you haven’t been talking as much as he has. You realize you’ve effortlessly tuned into his jumbled rambles, and you’re smiling a little bit, despite your earlier soured mood. You dismiss this. It’s probably nothing.</p><p>You listen intently as he describes the various snax to you. You could easily do this yourself, but it’s faster for him to talk out loud while they write down the notes, and then they both get something out of it. They can bounce ideas off of each other, too.<br/>His voice is a little husky, and you can see the little grin as he tries not to laugh at the rather unfortunate bugsnak named “crapple”. You make him get in the water. You planned ahead. You get to be dry since you have to write notes. He’s amused. He gets in.<br/>He looks a little bit like a mop with his fur wetted down like that. You chuckle to yourself and watch him swim. He’s strong, long fur swirling in the water. His large paws make for good paddles. His wet coat sticks to his chest. You find him an interesting specimen to study, sometimes. He’s a little odd, but easy on the eyes. You don’t know why you think that. It’s probably nothing.</p><p>He brings back a crapple. The two of you study it. He’s doing that thing again, where he starts mumbling to himself in a disorganized mess. You have to get him to snap out of it again.</p><p>He always listens to you when you talk. No one else really does. Or if they do, they don’t get all of it. It seems like he does. He lets you take the lead. </p><p>You’re fascinated by the aggressive snax. You want to see what will happen if it hits you. You have very little regard for your own safety- not out of self deprecation, but simply because it’s far less important than your research. That’s what you think, anyways.<br/>He steps in front of you and allows his hands to get hit instead. Though you don’t show it, you’re surprised, and maybe a little flattered. Your cheeks feel kind of hot again. It’s probably nothing. It was just nice of him to do.</p><p>His hands are frozen. Interesting!  You question him, and much to your delight, he’s very compliant. You start writing, rambling on about your theories. He wipes the ice on your cheek. Horrible. Horrible texture. Horrible manners. You make a weird noise. You feel like biting him, but in a friendly way. You might be mad in any other case. You aren’t sure why you’re not. It was a little funny. And his paws feel nice on your face. And you don’t know why you’re thinking like this. This isn’t like you. There’s no reason you should like having another grumpus touching your face because there’s no practical use or benefit you’d get from that. Everything can be broken down to something logical. Why can’t he? Why isn’t this the same as everything else? It’s probably nothing.<br/>It’s probably nothing.<br/>It’s probably nothing.<br/>It’s probably nothing.</p><p>The two of you decide to head back. Your cheeks are obnoxiously hot. You think you might have a fever. That’s the only explanation for why you could feel so weird today, you think. You’ll talk to Eggabell about it. He says something about you looking like you have bedhead, with half your cheek fur wetted down like that. He makes some lighthearted comment about a sleepover. You laugh. There’s something wrong with him.</p>
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<a name="section0005"><h2>5. Maybe It's a Fever</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Eggabell knows her poor friend has a crush and tries not to give them shit, Floofty does not get it. they are stupid about exactly one thing.</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>As Floofty walks into the medical tent, Eggabell is almost immediately at their side, fretting over them. She always worries far too much. Floofty thinks she’s going to give herself heart palpitations one of these days.</p><p>“What happened? Are you okay? Did something happen at the beach? Any broken bones? Why is your cheek wet?”</p><p>They shoo her hand away, shaking their head.<br/>“It’s nothing. Bearemy simply wiped his paw on me. It got frozen by a large, aggressive bugsnak there-”<br/>“Is he hurt?? That sounds like a really good way to get frostbite-”<br/>“I think he’s alright. He can move his fingers.”<br/>She doesn’t look satisfied by that. She gives them the look that always means she’s worried, and they wave her off.<br/>“You can ask him, if you’re so unsure. That isn’t why i’m here.”<br/>“What’s wrong?”<br/>“I think I may be running a fever.”<br/>She rambles about how dangerous fevers can be while she gets out a thermometer. They aren’t really listening. She takes their temperature, and it’s normal. She looks confused.<br/>“What makes you think you have a fever? Do you feel sick?”<br/>“My face is hot. And I've felt strange all day. Especially in the stomach.”<br/>She raises an eyebrow.<br/>“Did you eat anything weird?”<br/>“No.”<br/>Eggabell thinks for a moment, sitting down.<br/>“What all.. Happened?”<br/>She’s wondering if there’s anything they might’ve done, or something hazardous to avoid. They start to recount.<br/>“It wasn’t terribly eventful. We documented some of our findings. He caught a water bugsnak”, they note. They feel funny again. This shouldn’t be embarrassing.<br/>“- But i did not get in the water, so it isn’t a chill. Then we simply explored past the wreckage. He stopped the aggressive snak, and then put his paw on my face. A little wet cheek fur isn’t enough to make someone sick, is it?”<br/>It dawns on her, with the light blush she can see across their nose. The heat in their face, the off-feeling-<br/>“When you say in the stomach, do you mean it feels kinda like butterflies?”<br/>“Well, i suppose you could describe it that way. I haven’t consumed any flying snax lately.”<br/>They are so painfully oblivious, even to their own emotions. She tries to restrain herself from giggling. They would certainly take offense.<br/>“Aw, Floofty-”<br/>“What?”<br/>“I... can’t help you. You should just.. Rest. You know? I think you need to have some you-time. And think about stuff.”<br/>She’s smart enough not to accuse them of anything, no matter how obvious it is. They’ll just double down like that. But she was the same way with Liz.<br/>She thinks it’s kinda sweet.<br/>The look on their face is confused and dissatisfied. They may be incredibly intelligent, but it’s a little funny to see that even they’re stupid about some stuff.<br/>“I fail to see how “me-time” will resolve any illness, but if you insist, doctor.”<br/>She nods.<br/>“I promise it’ll clear up. Just take care of yourself. Okay?”<br/>“.... Okay.”<br/>They’re very, very confused as they stand up, walking out of her tent. They think they can sort of hear her giggling. They don’t know what they’re missing.</p><p>They lay down in their bed. Their face still feels kinda hot, and their stomach still feels like it’s full of butterflies. This whole day is confusing and Eggabell is being very unhelpful. They’ll just have to trust her advice. Maybe they’re simply feeling the effects of sleep deprivation, or something like that. They tend to stay up late with their work.<br/>….<br/>It’s very difficult for them not to, though.<br/>They look over the notes they took at the beach. Among the anatomical drawings of the snax they saw, there’s a small sketch of him. Their cheeks feel hotter. They put the book down and watch the stars. Perhaps they’ll feel better tomorrow.</p>
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